A memo issued by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in May allows agents to enter the homes of people suspected of being in the United States illegally under an administrative warrant — not a warrant signed by a judge — in order to make immigrant arrests, according to the whistleblower group, which said it shared the “confidential” memo with Congress.
Traditionally, ICE agents need a warrant signed by a judge in order to enter the home of a person suspected of being in the United States illegally. However, guidance allegedly provided by ICE in May suggests they can rely on administrative orders, which were written by officials within the Department of Homeland Security — and in most cases by ICE agents.
“Although the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has not historically relied on administrative warrants alone to detain aliens subject to final removal orders at their place of residence, the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of the General Counsel recently determined that the U.S. Constitution, the Immigration and Nationality Act, and immigration regulations do not prohibit reliance on administrative warrants for this purpose,” the May 12, 2025 memo signed by ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons said: According to the anonymous whistleblower complaint, which included a copy of the memo.
A man confronts federal agents while detaining someone while immigration enforcement continues after a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Judd on January 7 during an immigration raid in Minneapolis on January 21, 2026.
Leah Millis/Reuters
Whistleblower Assistance Group She says she represents two unidentified US government officials. The whistleblower group says the ICE memo violates the Fourth Amendment and the Department of Homeland Security’s policy manual.
The whistleblower group said in its complaint to Congress that ICE arrests are typically limited to public places because administrative detention orders, known as Form I-205, are not considered warrants issued by an “impartial and detached judge.”
“Only a warrant issued by a ‘neutral and separate judge’ allows ICE agents to enter or search non-public areas such as residences of aliens,” the group said.
“Upon information and belief, and consistent with the May 12 memorandum, ICE new recruit trainers are directed to teach that Form I-205 allows ICE agents to arrest aliens in their homes – without approval to enter the residence and without a warrant,” the whistleblower’s complaint states.
People are detained by US Border Patrol agents during a standoff at an intersection, on January 10, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
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In a statement, Tricia McLaughlin, Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for Public Affairs, said: “Every illegal alien who submits to DHS Administrative Warrants/I-205 has been subject to full due process and a final order of deportation from an immigration judge. The officers issuing these Administrative Warrants have also found probable cause. For decades, the Supreme Court and Congress have recognized the appropriateness of Administrative Warrants in immigration enforcement cases.”
At least one Democratic senator is calling for an investigation.
“Every American should be horrified by this secret ICE policy that allows its agents to break down your door and break into your home,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said in a statement. “It is a policy that is legally and morally abhorrent, and exemplifies the kinds of dangerous and reprehensible abuses that America is witnessing in real time. In our democracy, with rare and vanishing exceptions, the government is prohibited from breaking into your home without a judge giving the green light.”
According to the whistleblower complaint, a May ICE memo provides this guidance for agents to use administrative warrants to enter homes: “Before entering a residence to conduct an administrative immigration detention on a Form I-205, officials and agents must ensure that the Form I-205 is properly completed and is supported by a final removal order issued by an immigration judge, BIA, U.S. District Court, or District Judge. This is necessary because it establishes probable cause. Officials and agents must also have reason to believe that the alien resides and is currently located at the address where the Form I-205 is to be served.”
The memo says agents must “knock and announce” and explain their purpose, and if they are denied entry, they are allowed to use “only the amount of force necessary and reasonable to enter the alien’s residence.”
Todd Lyons, acting director of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), participates in a television interview outside the White House, November 3, 2025.
Brendan Smielowski/AFP via Getty Images
The memo, according to what was revealed, was kept securely at the Department of Homeland Security.
“The May 12 memo was provided to selected DHS officials who were then directed to provide an oral brief on the new work policy,” the complaint states. “These supervisors then show the memo to certain employees, like our clients, and direct them to read the memo and return it to the supervisor.”
Agents receive this training orally, but not in writing, the complaint said.
Immigration attorney Rosanna Berardi said the ICE memo “represents a fundamental challenge to the Fourth Amendment and another chapter of a Trump administration that ignores established legal precedence and acts like a legislative branch.”
She said the way the policy is being implemented is also troubling.
“Reports indicate that it is disseminated through verbal instructions that conflict with written training materials, creating a dangerous accountability vacuum,” Berardi told ABC News in an email.
